Top 10 Funniest SNL Sketches (Season 44)
#10: “The Impossible Hulk”
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For all intents and purposes, actor Idris Elba seems like a pretty chill dude. Perhaps that’s why the SNL writers room decided to turn him into the scariest thing a retail worker can possibly imagine: an emboldened white lady. In this hilarious sketch, Elba plays Dr. Bruce Banner, except instead of turning into a giant green rage monster whenever he gets angry, he turns into a seriously aggressed upon Cecily Strong. Short and sweet, “The Impossible Hulk” sees Elba dealing with a number of stressful situations, only for his alter ego to swoop in, freak out and call the cops. Who’d have thought Mark Ruffalo would lose his job to Heimdall and a female SNL vet?
#9: “What's That Name”
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Whenever former “Saturday Night Live” writer John Mulaney returns to host “SNL”, it’s must-see TV. Need proof? Just check out this hilarious sketch featuring Mulaney, Bill Hader and Cecily Strong. Mulaney plays a contestant on a game show called “What’s That Name”, where the rules are simple: (we show you a person, you tell us their name). Mulaney aces the first challenge but fails hilariously when Hader asks him for the name of his best friend’s girlfriend. Watching Hader delight in his misery gets us every time. Mulaney impressed further in the “Cha Cha Slide” sketch, where he plays wedding date concerned that he won’t know anyone. The laughs come in waves as Mulaney turns out to be pretty comfortable dancing and mingling with his fellow wedding goers.
#8: “First Impression”
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Meeting your significant other’s parents can be stressful, causing some people to overcompensate in the charm department. Well, in this hilarious sketch, a nervous boyfriend, (played by Beck Bennett) takes things to a whole new level; though we’re not sure if charming is the best way to describe his bizarre antics. When the parents in question arrive (played by host Jason Momoa and Heidi Gardner), they’re surprised to find that their daughter’s new beau wants them to “come find [him]”. What follows is a surreal game of cat and mouse that culminates with Momoa pulling a half-naked and greased up Bennett out from behind a TV stand. If you enjoy absurdist humor, this skit is for you.
#7: R. Kelly Cold Open
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In this sketch, “Saturday Night Live’s” longest tenured cast member Kenan Thompson delivers a hilarious spoof of R. Kelly's infamous 2019 interview with Gayle King. Kelly sat down with the CBS News anchor to discuss the numerous allegations of sexual abuse against minors that had cropped up following the release of the tell-all documentary series “Surviving R. Kelly”. The sketch, which features Leslie Jones as Gayle King, is a side-splitting journey into the interview’s most ridiculous moments; from Kelly not knowing what a cult is, to the moment he stands up and bangs his own chest in anger. Thompson thrives on playing flawed, over-the-top individuals (Steve Harvey, anyone?), and he absolutely crushes this sketch from start to finish.
#6: “House Hunters”
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In this bit, host Liev Schreiber and SNL regular Leslie Jones play a couple searching for their dream home, in a hilarious parody of the long-running HGTV show “House Hunters”. As they sip wine and evaluate one ridiculous home after another, one can’t help but admire the creativity of “Saturday Night Live”’s writers, who manage to come up with a slew of insane in-home features. From a toilet on the ceiling to a fenced in yard perfect for Schreiber’s adult sister to run around in, the laughs start early and don’t stop until the screen cuts to black. The best part: Schreiber’s “man cave”. Now that’s what we call comedic payoff.
#5: “The Actress”
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With an Oscar winning actress at their disposal, the “SNL” writers room dug deep and came up with one of season 44’s funniest and most delightfully unexpected sketches. In it, Emma Stone plays an actress on her way to film a scene in a gay adult film, where she plays the wife who gets cheated on. Upon arriving, she struggles to get into character, thrown off by the director’s laissez-faire attitude and an abundance of lube that’s seemingly everywhere. Stone nails the role of an actor taking their character way too seriously, ad-libbing lines and giving them a rich backstory; despite the director’s insistence that the character “exists only to be cheated on.'' Leave it to Emma Stone to make us care for a character so utterly meaningless.
#4: “Romano Tours”
Adam Sandler’s long-awaited return to “Saturday Night Live” had no shortage of laugh-out-loud moments and nostalgic call-backs, from the return of Sandler’s iconic weekend update character Opera Man – who still has a penchant for singing about the week’s top headlines – to the introduction of new characters like Joe Romano. In “Romano Tours,” Sandler plays an apathetic tour company owner who wants to remind people that just because they book a trip to Italy, does not mean they’ll instantly find happiness there. He goes on to point out that while Romano Tours can take you to the Italian Riviera, it can’t make you feel comfortable in a bathing suit. Through it all, Sandler’s disenchanted guide continues to temper expectations, all with hilarious results.
#3: Weezer Holiday Dinner Party
The premise of this bit is simple: a group of neighbors are having a dinner party, when suddenly, a Weezer song pits two diehard fans against each other. Host Matt Damon and Leslie Jones play the aforementioned Weezer-heads, with the former adhering to the belief that the band is still good, and the latter firmly entrenched in the school of thought that the band hasn’t had a good album since the ‘90s. Despite the pleas of their fellow dinner guests, Damon and Jones’ characters go completely off the rails in their spirited debate over whether or not the band is still good. While their wives and husbands are perplexed, viewers can’t help but laugh at the casual threats of violence doled out by the two Weezer-philes.
#2: “Career Day”
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Adam Driver kicked off the 44th season of “Saturday Night Live” with a handful of hilarious sketches that demonstrated why he’s one of Hollywood’s most versatile actors. However, you’d be hard pressed to find a performance as outrageous as the one he delivers in the sketch titled “Career Day”. In it, Driver plays Abraham H. Parnassus, a ruthless oil baron who visits his son’s high school on career day to extoll the virtues of his trade; and verbally abuse his child. While some would argue that Kylo Ren is the evilest character Driver’s played, we think Abraham H. Parnassus would give the Star Wars baddie a serious run for his money. Before we unveil our number one pick, here are some honorable mentions: “The War in Words” “Film Critic Terry Fink's Spring Movie Review” “Future Self” “Extreme Baking Championship” “Etiquette Lesson”
#1: “Bodega Bathroom”
John Mulaney has blown up since leaving “SNL” in 2013. He’s won a Primetime Emmy for his stand-up work, lent his voice to the 2018 smash hit “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” and is one of the stars of the hilarious animated series “Big Mouth.” And yet, from this moment on whenever we think of him, our minds will immediately drift to his pitch perfect performance in “Bodega Bathroom”, the spiritual successor to Mulaney's "Diner Lobster" sketch from season 43. In it, Mulaney plays a Bodega owner who fancies himself an urban Willy Wonka; except instead of a candy factory, he runs a filthy bodega filled with cockroaches, Oompa Loompa-type creatures and a singing toilet. With multiple musical number parodies, a host who’s all-in and even a couple of character breaks, “Bodega Bathroom” is the “SNL” musical parody you didn’t know you needed.
